What Stalks the Deep - Book Review

 

What Stalks the Deep (Sworn Soldier #3)

by T. Kingfisher

What is it about:

Alex Easton does not want to visit America.

They particularly do not want to visit an abandoned coal mine in West Virginia with a reputation for being haunted.

But when their old friend Dr. Denton summons them to help find his lost cousin—who went missing in that very mine—well, sometimes a sworn soldier has to do what a sworn soldier has to do...

What did I think of it:

I am so in love with this series!

This book was yet another great read. It's funny, witty, suspenseful, and full of creepiness.

I absolutely adore Alex, they're sensible, but at the same time end up in trouble because they're also more courageous then they give themselves credit for.

I had a great time with this book and I wll most probably reread all three books in this series soon, while hoping Kingfisher writes tons more.

Why should you read it:

It's a fun and suspenseful Horror read.

The City in Glass - Book Review

 

The City in Glass

by Nghi Vo

What is it about:

A demon. An angel. A city that burns at the heart of the world.

The demon Vitrine—immortal, powerful, and capricious—loves the dazzling city of Azril. She has mothered, married, and maddened the city and its people for generations, and built it into a place of joy and desire, revelry and riot.

And then the angels come, and the city falls.

Vitrine is left with nothing but memories and a book containing the names of those she has lost—and an angel, now bound by her mad, grief-stricken curse to haunt the city he burned.

She mourns her dead and rages against the angel she longs to destroy. Made to be each other’s devastation, angel and demon are destined for eternal battle. Instead, they find themselves locked in a devouring fascination that will change them both forever.

Together, they unearth the past of the lost city and begin to shape its future. But when war threatens Azril and everything they have built, Vitrine and her angel must decide whether they will let the city fall again.

The City in Glass is both a brilliantly constructed history and an epic love story, of death and resurrection, memory and transformation, redemption and desire strong enough to burn a world to ashes and build it anew.

What did I think of it:

I love the The Singing Hills Cycle books by Nghi Vo, so wanted to give something else by Vo a try.

And got my heart stepped on and broken in the most devastatingly beautiful way.

This book is so gorgeously written. The imagery, the stories, the doomed city, I fell in love with Azril even where I didn't have it in me to love Vitrine. With all her passion and love for the city, Vitrine was too selfish to be the heroine in this story even as both she and the angel are changed by their connection. Instead she's the catalyst, the heart of Azril for better or worse.

All in all this is both a wonderful story and one I will not easily pick up for a reread, although it will definitely get a spot on my keeper shelves.

Why should you read it:

It's hauntingly beautiful.

Teaser Tuesdays - Six Scorched Roses

 

The first time I met death, it was in my first breaths - or rather, the first breaths I didn't take. I was born too small, too sickly, too quiet.

(page 3, Six Scorched Roses by Carissa Broadbent)

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Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, previously hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following: - Grab your current read - Open to a random page - Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) - Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their  TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Wolf Worm - Early Book Review

Wolf Worm

by T. Kingfisher

What is it about:

The year is 1899 and Sonia Wilson is a scientific illustrator without work, prospects, or hope. When the reclusive Dr. Halder offers her a position illustrating his vast collection of insects, Sonia jumps at the chance to move to his North Carolina manor house and put her talents to use. But soon enough she finds that there are darker things at work than the Carolina woods. What happened to her predecessor, Halder’s wife? Why are animals acting so strangely, and what is behind the peculiar local whispers about “blood thiefs?”

With the aid of the housekeeper and a local healer, Sonia discovers that Halder’s entomological studies have taken him down a dark road full of parasitic maggots that burrow into human flesh, and that his monstrous experiments may grow to encompass his newest illustrator as well.

What did I think of it:

New Nightmare Unlocked!

I'm not a fan of bugs and other creepy crawlies at the best of times, so knowing this book had parasitic maggots I went in with the expectation of being squicked out.

Turns out I was both squicked and freaked out by this book!

I loved the buildup, the setting, and the characters. Sonia (as all of Kingfisher's main characters) was easy to root for, and I could not put the book down, even (or especially) during the more icky scenes.

Kingfisher brilliantly weaves entomology with myth creating a horrifically awesome story that I most certainly will reread, even though it has given me new nightmares about insects.

Why should you read it:

if you are as squicked out by insects as I am, this is the perfect Horror for you!

Expected publication March 24, 2026

Snake-Eater - Book Review

Snake-Eater

by T. Kingfisher

What is it about:

From New York Times bestselling and Hugo Award–winning author T. Kingfisher comes an enthralling contemporary fantasy seeped in horror about a woman trying to escape her past by moving to the remote US desert—only to find herself beholden to the wrath of a vengeful god.

With only a few dollars to her name and her beloved dog Copper by her side, Selena flees her past in the city to claim her late aunt’s house in the desert town of Quartz Creek. The scorpions and spiders are better than what she left behind.

Because in Quartz Creek, there’s a strange beauty to everything, from the landscape to new friends, and more blue sky than Selena’s ever seen. But something lurks beneath the surface. Like the desert gods and spirits lingering outside Selena’s house at night, keeping watch. Mostly benevolent, says her neighbor Grandma Billy. That doesn’t ease the prickly sense that one of them watches too closely and wants something from Selena she can’t begin to imagine. And when Selena’s search for answers leads her to journal entries that her aunt left behind, she discovers a sinister truth about her new home: It’s the haunting grounds of an ancient god known simply as “Snake-Eater,” who her late aunt made a promise to that remains unfulfilled.

Snake-Eater has taken a liking to Selena, an obsession of sorts that turns sinister. And now that Selena is the new owner of his home, he’s hell-bent on collecting everything he’s owed.

What did I think of it:

If it's possible to call something cozy horror, this book is it.

I love Kingfisher's writing style, fell in love with her horror books, then fell in love with her Fairy Tale reimaginings, her Fantasy Romance, and now this book.

It's mostly cozy magical realism with hints to something more horrific, but for me it never got too dark.

I loved discovering Quartz Creek and its inhabitants together with Selena. There are a couple of really interesting and fun characters, as well as some surprises I didn't see coming. There's a pleasant cozy pace to this story and world, only disturbed by Snake-Eater. 

( I will confess I felt some sympathy towards Snake-Eater even while realizing Snake-Eater is the evil that needs to be banished for Selena to find happiness.)

All in all a story and setting I totally fell in love with. I hope Kingfisher keeps the books coining, because I want more.

Why should you read it:

It's lovely, cozy horror. 

On McPig's Radar - Sea of Charms

 

Sea of Charms (Spellshop #3)

by Sarah Beth Durst

Marin is a supply runner with her own boat that she sails from island to island, delivering whatever anyone will pay her to deliver: letters, flour, even the occasional enchanted lemur. It’s a lonely life, but it’s hers, and she wouldn’t trade the freedom of the sea for anything. Her only companion is a sea serpent, Perri, whom she saved from a fisherfolk’s net.

One day, she sails to Alyssium and discovers the city is on fire. There’s been a revolution, and the empire has fallen. Marin, with Perri, begins transporting refugees, finding them new homes where they can start over. One such refugee is Dax, a composer who refuses to leave behind his instruments, no matter how much she tries to emphasize the gravity of the situation. Intrigued by his stubbornness, his passion for stories, and his charming smile, Marin discovers perhaps she isn’t saving him ― maybe it’s the other way around.

Expected publication July 28, 2026

Paladin's Hope - Book Review

 

Paladin's Hope (The Saint of Steel #3)

by T. Kingfisher

What is it about:

Piper is a lich-doctor, a physician who works among the dead, determining causes of death for the city guard's investigations. It's a peaceful, if solitary profession…until the day when he's called to the river to examine the latest in a series of mysterious bodies, mangled by some unknown force.

Galen is a paladin of a dead god, lost to holiness and no longer entirely sane. He has long since given up on any hope of love. But when the two men and a brave gnole constable are drawn into the web of the mysterious killer, it's Galen's job to protect Piper from the traps that await them.

He's just not sure if he can protect Piper from the most dangerous threat of all…

What did I think of it:

This is my favorite in this series so far!

I fell in love with Piper in Paladin's Grace, so seeing him getting his own book in this series made me so happy. Galen is a worthy love interest, and I loved seeing the two pine for each other. They're the sweetest couple yet, imo

I also loved learning more about gnole society, loved the gnole constable who asks Galen and Piper to join him on an investigation, loved seeing Brindle again... well, love for all things gnolish all around!

The overall story was suspenseful and fun. I had a great time with the weird situations they get into. 

All in all a delightful read.

I'll get to the last book soon, I hope.

Why should you read it:

It's a very enjoyable Fantasy Romance